The EBSS asked the students at the Edwards School of Business to submit questions to the Deans of the school. After careful deliberation, they have submitted their answers to these questions.

Strategic

 1. What do you see changing at ESB in 5 years?

Dean Grant Isaac

• The ESB has just undergone some fairly big changes in the past 2 ½ years. I see a period of consolidation and implementation ahead, for the most part. Having said this, you can expect to see an increasing connectivity (literally and figuratively) with our key stakeholders such as the downtown business community that will further drive up our relevance and reputation. You can also expect greater emphasis upon entrepreneurship (thanks to the Wilson Centre) and a fulfillment of our internationalization plans (thanks to the Hanlon Centre).

Associate Dean Gary Entwistle

• As the ESB grows in reputation, I sense even greater demand for the BComm major.

Associate Dean C. Brooke Dobni

• I would like it to be positioned as a school of choice for students. This means top quality professors, and a work ethic among students that is unparalleled. This will involve a change in culture amongst both faculty and students, and in fact, this culture change has begun.

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• We will continue to invest in the undergraduate student experience. Those investments will include co-operative education, Goodspeed Career Services, student counselling and program support, experiential learning, internationalization, student retention and success strategies and aboriginal initiatives.

2. Do you have any plans to integrate more Aboriginal content into ESB programs?

Dean Grant Isaac

• The greatest opportunity facing the Province of Saskatchewan is the development of the aboriginal workforce. For our part, we will increase our programming for aboriginal students (certificate, undergraduate and graduate levels) and, at the same time, increase our programming to assist non-aboriginal students in preparing for this tremendous workforce opportunity.

Associate Dean Gary Entwistle

• This is something that is always on the agenda of ESB.

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• Yes!

3. Do you believe professors should focus on research or teaching more?  What sort of balance should be achieved between the two?

Dean Grant Isaac

• Broadly speaking, Universities are learning environments. Researching is when professors are learning and contributing new knowledge at the edges of their disciplines (or the spaces between disciplines). Teaching is when students are learning. As such, research and teaching are not mutually exclusive activities. Instead, researching and teaching are reinforcing learning activities. As such, a balance is not only desirable, it is expected.

• Now, with respect to the ESB, as a professional School we have a mandate to be academically rigorous and professionally relevant at the same time. What this means is that our faculty complement needs to include 1) professors who are research active and fulfilling our academic rigour requirement as well as 2) professors who are professionally recognized and, hence, fulfilling our professional relevance requirement. As such, the balance between academically-qualified and professionally-qualified faculty is determined by our mandate.

• Returning to the issue of teaching and research, what this means in practice is that the balance between research and teaching will be different for different types of faculty members.

Associate Dean Gary Entwistle

• For myself, I find the two are mutually reinforcing.

Associate Dean C. Brooke Dobni

• Both are necessary as we pursue a teacher-scholar model. If anything, I would like to see the professors pursue a balance between applied ad academic research.

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• Professors have three job requirements; teaching, research and service. I do not believe that any one of those components can take precedence at the expense of the others. I believe that there should be a balance and that work in one area usually benefits the other areas.

 4. Are professor evaluations taken seriously, and to what extent is the feedback considered in renewing terms?

Dean Grant Isaac

• Assuming that the reference here is to teaching evaluations and accountability for teaching performance, I would say that evaluations (both peer and student evaluations) are taken very seriously for career considerations (tenure and promotion as well as term appointments). So, I would strongly encourage all students to meaningfully participate in student evaluations. What we need to improve upon is the consistency and quality of the teaching evaluations. To this end, we have a committee of faculty in the ESB working on recommendations to improve our system of teaching assessment. This work is nearly complete and with any luck, improvements would be incorporated in the next academic year.

Associate Dean Gary Entwistle

• Absolutely they are.

Associate Dean C. Brooke Dobni

• Definitely and absolutely! Terms have not been renewed in the past due to their teaching performance.

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• Yes, they are taken seriously. I encourage all students to provide thoughtful feedback on course evaluations.

5. How do you plan to make ESB comparable to other Canadian business schools?

Dean Grant Isaac

• Interesting questions, indeed, because I am not sure that comparability is what we are striving for! Yes, there must be a solid foundation of academically and professionally-qualified faculty combined with a dedicated staff complement delivering an educational program deep in functional theories and frameworks yet integrated in decision making and professional competencies. I am confident that we are very comparable across these dimensions. Where we are not comparable - deliberately - is our commitment to a transformative student experience. We are investing significantly in the student experience at a level not matched elsewhere.

• We already have a tremendous reputation (now 95 years in the making). The reputation of a business education at the University of Saskatchewan is derived from hard-working students who have been inspirational in their humble approach to outstanding achievements. As graduates they have become business and community leaders with a deep commitment to "doing right" often with recognition as the very last thing on their minds! Students can help with this reputation by carrying on the tradition of hard work, generosity and community responsibility.

Associate Dean Gary Entwistle

• Continue hiring great faculty, attracting great students, and building our brand

Associate Dean C. Brooke Dobni

• Those plans are well in motion already. The dean has a strategic plan to 2012 that succinctly outlines how we plan to build and maintain a high performance business school.

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• I have no intention of making ESB comparable to other Canadian business schools. I intend to make it better!

6. How do you determine the mix of professors with academic and professional backgrounds?

Dean Grant Isaac

• See #3

Associate Dean Gary Entwistle

• The majority of our professors have both.

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• This is a question that I will leave for the Dean to answer.

7. How will students directly benefit from the recent sponsorships received by ESB?

Dean Grant Isaac

• Students are directly benefiting from the recent strategic partnerships. In fact, enhancing the student experience is at the heart of all the strategic partnerships. For example, since 2006 our annual base of scholarships and bursaries has more than doubled from approximately $420,000 to over $900,000 and will soon be well over $1 Million. The strategic partnership with Cameco directly supports the operating costs of the Co-operative Education Program. The Wilson and Hanlon Centres provide support for student projects and exchanges. Murray Edwards' gift provided direct support for student competitions as well. These are all opportunities for students that would not otherwise be possible off of the operating budget. These strategic partnerships also provide for faculty support and increase the array of opportunities that we have to recruit and retain top faculty. The better our faculty the better the student experience. Finally, these strategic partnerships carry with them a powerful brand recognition. This is the School that has partnered with world-class companies like PotashCorp and Cameco, Rawlco and Procter & Gamble as well as with inspirational business and community leaders like Murray Edwards, Ted Hanlon, David Sutherland and, of course, Brett Wilson. These are organizations and individuals that have a reputation for investing in excellence. They have invested in us.

• With respect to the Edwards gift and the subsequent naming in honour of the gift, the name pertains as long as the endowment is in place and funding various student scholarships and initiatives. Remember that our strategic partnership is with a relatively young man whose personal fortune is vast and whose commitment to the School is lasting. This is a long-term relationship whose benefits to the students at the ESB we are only beginning to realize.

Associate Dean Gary Entwistle

• Directly through scholarships and indirectly through being associated with a named school

Associate Dean C. Brooke Dobni

• For the most part, brand equity and what I consider to be "buzz." We are on the map in a very big way.

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• Students are benefiting in a variety of ways. For example, increased support for scholarships and bursaries, support for the Business Cooperative Education Program, support for Goodspeed Career Services, the Wilson Center for Entrepreneurship and the Hanlon Center for International Business Studies.

8. How will the expansion of graduate program offerings affect undergraduate students?

Dean Grant Isaac

• Graduate programs come in two types; research-based programs (e.g. the Masters of Science in Finance) and professional programs (e.g. the Masters of Business Administration and the Masters of Professional Accounting). The former add to our research mission and reputation. They also provide opportunities for students to experience an academic career and, hence, might be a stepping-stone to a PhD program and return to the ESB as a faculty member some day! The latter add to our professional mission and reputation (and, in some cases, can also be a stepping stone to an academic career). So, graduate programs affect undergraduate programs by 1) providing additional educational offerings for undergraduate students post BCOMM, 2) by assisting in our ability to recruit and retain excellent faculty and 3) by enhancing the overall reputation of the ESB for rigour and relevance.

Associate Dean Gary Entwistle

• Most top business schools have successful undergraduate and graduate programs.

Associate Dean C. Brooke Dobni

• Business schools are measured in part by the quality of their graduate programs. Having strong programs works to attract faculty and resources. There will be a big benefit for students.

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• Graduate programs support the reputation of the school. For example, they support our research agenda and add to reputation through the placement of graduates in key business positions Canada and beyond.

9. Will ESB encourage more international students to attend?

Dean Grant Isaac

• Absolutely. Saskatchewan is the most trade-dependent province in the world's most trade-dependent country. We are parochial at our peril. As such, we have an internationalization plan that includes increasing our complement of international students. International students increase our global connectivity and they bring diversity into our classrooms. At the same time, the ESB will also encourage more of our local students to participate in international exchange opportunities by providing a financial contribution to their travels through the Hanlon Centre.

Associate Dean Gary Entwistle

• Definitely

Associate Dean C. Brooke Dobni

• Yes, plans are in motion for that as well.

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• ESB has already increased the number of international students in the undergraduate program. In addition, we are supporting more ESB students participating in study abroad initiatives and attempt to reciprocate by accepting international students for a semester of study at ESB.

10. How do you hold professors accountable?

Dean Grant Isaac

• See #4

Associate Dean Gary Entwistle

• There are definitely pressures to perform in the classroom, in research, and in providing service to the school and university.  One cannot be a successful academic without excellent performance. 

Associate Dean C. Brooke Dobni

• We have very good standards for tenure and promotion. We have also instituted a research based model which encourages faculty to research. They are also evaluated on teaching and service. If they don't make the grade, they won't get tenured or promoted.

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• Accountability occurs with the use of output measures in the areas of teaching, research and service. On the teaching side we use course evaluations and peer assessment of teaching.

11. In what ways can students help to make the Edwards School of Business as famous and reputable as other business schools such as Richard Ivey, Harvard, etc? Where do you feel we stand in comparison to such schools today?

Dean Grant Isaac

• See #5

Associate Dean Gary Entwistle

• I've studied and taught at Richard Ivey.  Our students are definitely their equal.  Work hard and give back.

Associate Dean C. Brooke Dobni

• First off, by being respectable, professional and ethical. Second, by promoting the brand. If you don't believe in the quality of your educational experience, then it will be hard to convince others. As we move forward, we will build a history of tradition. I have guest lectured in the Ivey MBA program. If the truth be known, there is very little to no difference between what we do here and what they do at Ivey for example. Ivey just tells a better story, and their students have more "attitude."

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• See my response to question (5) above. I have no intention of making ESB comparable to other Canadian business schools. I intend to make it better! We have many highly successful graduates of our B.COMM program. One example is N. Murray Edwards.

University Level

1. Will the tuition freeze remain in effect?

Dean Grant Isaac

• No

Associate Dean Gary Entwistle

• The government is working on a tuition strategy.  It's too soon to predict what it will eventually look like.

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• The provincial government has already signalled that the freeze on tuition will come off this year.

 2. Why is tuition in ESB relatively higher?

Dean Grant Isaac

• The University of Saskatchewan's Office of Budget Management - which sets tuition for all academic units - has a ‘national norms policy' for setting tuitions. Accordingly, the tuition rates established among a group of comparable Business Schools are identified and the rate for the ESB is pegged within this comparator group. That is, tuition rates are set to reflect national increases in the cost base of delivering the educational programs and delivering on the research and outreach missions. Of course, as noted in the answer above, with the onset of the tuition management policy in 2005-06 this tuition-setting process has been on hold.

Associate Dean Gary Entwistle

• It's still a great investment.

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• Undergraduate tuition at ESB was set in accordance with the University National Norms Tuition Policy. This policy set tuition at the mid-point of business programs in the entire Canadian medical doctoral university group.

3. Do you expect tuition to rise in the near future?

Dean Grant Isaac

• Yes. The Government of Saskatchewan has stated publicly that they wish to move away from the tuition management policy that started in 2005-06 and, effectively, froze undergraduate tuition levels at the 2004-05 levels. Please keep in mind that while tuition was held, costs of delivering the education rose. So, we can expect tuition rates that will rise over a period of time (yet to be determined) in order to cover the increase in the cost base since 2004-05 (which in the intervening years has been covered by the Government of Saskatchewan through increases in the Provincial Operating Grant to the University).

Associate Dean Gary Entwistle

• It's quite likely

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• Yes, I expect tuition to rise. I am hopeful that the increases will be measured and reasonable and will balance general price level increases with affordability.

4. If you could change one thing at the U of S, what would it be?

Dean Grant Isaac

• A complete acceptance that we can be in Saskatoon and be pre-eminent. We have tremendous students, an outstanding faculty and staff complement, a truly amazing alumni base and strategic partnerships with world class organizations and leaders.

Associate Dean Gary Entwistle

• Winters wouldn't be quite so long.

Associate Dean C. Brooke Dobni

• I would change the culture overall to one that is more aggressive/progressive and forward thinking. I would also like it to be less bureaucratic and more trusting. This would allow us to make important decisions on a timelier basis.

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• I would ensure that every student in every class had an educational experience that transformed them.

5. Why is there not a mid-term break in semester one?

Dean Grant Isaac

• The Fall semester includes both Thanksgiving Day and Remembrance Day and, hence, has two long weekends or holidays built in. Until the creation of the Family Day long-weekend in February, there were no breaks in the Winter semester. In addition, the cold and dark winters can have a depressive effect on students (and staff and faculty!).

Associate Dean Gary Entwistle

• This is definitely an idea worth considering.

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• I am not sure I can answer this question definitively. My best guess is that term one has one long weekend and one other day off; Thanksgiving and Remembrance Day and students are fresh from the summer break. Term two comes in the dead of winter and had no holiday until Family Day was recently declared. I suspect that universities have discovered that students need a break in term two more than in term one.

General

 1. Why do we not have direction signs at ESB [showing room locations]?

Dean Grant Isaac

• This is a great question for which my only answer is that building signage is a responsibility of a central administrative unit on campus.

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• Good question! I will take this under advisement.

 2. Why doesn't the stock ticker work?

Dean Grant Isaac

• OK, so sometimes the data feed has gone down and needed a re-boot but for the most part the Stock Ticker works great!

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• See above.

3. Why is ESB not open late at night anymore?

Dean Grant Isaac

• Unfortunately, we have had to take steps both within the ESB and within the University to control the access to classrooms and other spaces late at night and overnight because of theft and vandalism. We cannot afford to continually replace projectors, for example. In addition, have you noticed how much graffiti is on the desks especially in the PotashCorp Centre? Until we can regain a confidence that rooms and equipment will not be vandalized or stolen we will have to continue to restrict access.

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• ESB is open late.

4. What is your opinion on moral boosting (pranking)?

Dean Grant Isaac

• I have no problem with the concept but have little enthusiasm for the implementation. I don't understand the usefulness of graffiti on sidewalks of public buildings with profanity and crude imagery or how filling a room with dirt and straw can be fun. To me, those are not pranks they are just vanadalism. But hey, I am an old curmudgeon.

Associate Dean C. Brooke Dobni

• I don't think it is necessary. This could be related to my age - but I think there is better ways to boost morale that also better express our maturity towards its. Unfortunately, one of these days someone somewhere is going to get seriously injured (and that notwithstanding the damage and cost of pranking!)

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• When I was a student this was a hoot. However, the world has changed and we have changed with it.

5. Can the school do more to make scholarships and bursaries available to a wider range of students?

Dean Grant Isaac

• See # 7 under strategy.

Associate Dean C. Brooke Dobni

• We are doing pretty well right now. Approximately $792,000 was given out this year alone. If that kind of money was available when I came through here in the 1980's, I would have gotten what might be considered full scholarship money.

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• When I first became Assistant Dean, we offered about $200,000 of undergraduate scholarships. Today that amount is over $750,000. We plan to go higher yet.

6. Why do all business school across Canada get Friday's off?

Dean Grant Isaac

• Good question! Somewhere along the line it was determined that 50 minutes was simply not enough time to develop a meaningful lecture. All lectures were moved to 80 minutes which eliminated the need for Monday, Wednesday and Friday scheduling. Hence, Friday's fell off the weekly calendar for most regular course scheduling. Labs and tutorials are often scheduled on Friday.

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• I will not speak for other business schools. Traditionally, the Friday off came about due to the Mon/Wed Tues/Thur one and half hour schedules. Today, our students do not get a day off as we have many classes and labs scheduled on that day.

7. How long does the name "Edwards" stay with our school?  Is this contract based?

Dean Grant Isaac

• See #7 under strategy.

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• I will leave this question with the Dean.

Undergraduate Specific

 1. Many business schools do not have majors, but have one with focus streams.  With the introduction of the management major, is the school moving towards this style?

Dean Grant Isaac

• There are no plans to move toward a "major-less" undergraduate program (despite the fact that many other business schools are like this) or some other configuration of majors.

• With respect to an entrepreneurship major, an international business major or a focus on the finance major for investment banking these developments are potentially interesting and would be subject to an appropriate mix of academically and professionally-qualified faculty with the expertise to deliver a full major in these areas.

• It is also important to note that these are not my decision to make unilaterally! From a governance perspective, the curriculum is owned by the faculty of the ESB and any substantive changes - such as those alluded to above - need to be approved by the faculty council.

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• I do not anticipate moving to this style. I believe that we will have majors in a number of functional areas and one broad and open Management Major.

2. Why is Introductory Business Law no longer a required class?

Dean Grant Isaac

• During our last undergraduate curriculum review we took the decision to include other courses in our curriculum which required us to remove a core course. The decision of the committee - approved by faculty - was to remove Business Law from the core but to keep it as an elective course.

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• We eliminated Business Law as a required class to make room in our curriculum for other courses. Students can still take Business Law as an elective.

3. Why was Business Communications II introduced into the curriculum?

Dean Grant Isaac

• Again, reflecting back on our last undergraduate curriculum review we identified that the ability to communicate effectively was a key professional competency essential for career success. In fact, our stakeholder community was very clear in its view that the communication skills of our graduates had slipped. We added the second BusComm course to ensure comprehensive coverage in this area.

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• The second Business Communications class was introduced in response to employers who have indicated over and over that our ESB graduates need better communications skills.

4. How are classes scheduled?

Dean Grant Isaac

• When scheduling classes we need to think about

  • faculty capacity constraints (we need qualified faculty members to deliver our courses so as to keep the quality of the experience high). Our capacity is impacted by our ability to recruit faculty and by faculty sabbatical and other leaves such as appointments to administrative positions (Deans, Department Heads, etc.)

  • physical capacity constraints (remember we now have 2100 students in a facility designed for 1600) and a real desire to keep classes for ESB students in or close to the ESB

  • student demand and student enrolment patterns (such as the increasing number of students taking less than a full load each year)

  • balance between first and second term offerings

• An extraordinary amount of effort and consideration goes into this process each year.

• With respect to restricted majors, the main constraint is the faculty capacity constraint. We need to be certain that we have the qualified experts in the classroom before we expand. That is, quality trumps quantity on this issue.

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• We schedule classes based on a number of criteria including:

• Demand (the number of students in each major and each year)
• The need to keep a balance between first term and second term offerings
• The need to schedule faculty teaching in a balanced way and in accordance with their subject matter expertise
• The need to work around faculty sabbaticals
• Faculty preference
• Student enrolment patterns

5. Do you feel that Comm. 340 should be a requirement to ensure students are well rounded?

Dean Grant Isaac

• I must admit a complete bias on this one as COMM 340 is a course that I have taught and international business is a field of research for me. However, bias aside, I think that there is an outstanding array of senior electives for students to take and that students should choose based upon their personal interests as well as on their career and life ambitions.

Associate Dean C. Brooke Dobni

• Yes, definitely.

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• I believe that there are many valuable free senior electives that our students can take. Rather than dictate one class or another, I prefer students select free senior electives in accordance with their interests and in a way that supports their chosen major and career objectives.

6. Do you have any plans to restructure the undergraduate degrees in the ESB?

Dean Grant Isaac

• See #1

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• While curriculum should always be flexible and adaptive, we have no major plans to restructure at this point. However, we are in the process of evaluating our first year curriculum in light of the changes made in 2006. This is a quality initiative as much as a restructuring.

7. How do you balance the demand for technical knowledge with the goal of having a well rounded B.Comm degree program at ESB?

Dean Grant Isaac

• I would think of this in the context of our academic rigour and professional relevance mandate. We need to achieve both in course of the BCOMM program. Certainly curriculum design is crucial in this and I am comfortable that the last undergraduate curriculum review made some important changes to address this balance. In addition, the faculty are, of course, absolutely crucial in this. As I have mentioned above, our faculty complement needs to include 1) professors who are research active and fulfilling our academic rigour requirement as well as 2) professors who are professionally recognized and, hence, fulfilling our professional relevance requirement. As such, the balance between academically-qualified and professionally-qualified faculty is determined by our mandate.

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• I firmly believe that our curriculum does just this very thing given its design.

8. Why do students choose a major so early?

Dean Grant Isaac

• To claim that a student has a sufficient degree of program specialization to count as a "major" essentially requires a full two-year period to achieve. At the point of Pick-A-Major students have been exposed to all functional areas.

• As for the actual event, we have found that students tend to want to hear from other students as well as recent grads. We are pleased with how this is working out but are always interested in feedback on what can be improved.

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• Students pick their major in the second term of their second year of study. At that point, they have been exposed to all the functional areas of business and should have a feel for the various majors. If students picked any later in their program, they would not have time to complete their degree in an orderly two year period.

 9. Why are there not more co-ops available?

Dean Grant Isaac

• The limit on co-op placements has been student applications and not available placements. Yes, in the first year we deliberately kept the program small in order to work out any operational issues that we did not anticipate. Now, we have no limits imposed on the program placements.

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• We launched the Business Co-operative Education Program (BCEP) last year with sixteen student placements. For this year we are planning for 43 student placements. To date, this rate of placements has been dictated by student applications, not by placement opportunities or limits imposed by Goodspeed Career Services.

10. Do you have any plans to encourage on-campus recruitment for majors other than accounting?

Dean Grant Isaac

• While accounting recruitment is highly visible, organized and systematic it is not the only recruitment going on. The folks in Goodspeed Career Services have done an excellent job in securing on-site recruitment for non-accounting majors through the networking event, the hall visits as well as a number of special events that they run throughout the year. Be sure to keep up-to-date with the Goodspeed Career Services activities and initiatives.

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• The accounting recruitment is highly visible as it happens in the fall time frame. I believe that this leaves an impression that not other recruitment occurs on campus. This is not the case. Recruitment for other majors occurs throughout the year as jobs become available. Because the recruitment is less visible and different job search techniques are required, there is a perception that no other recruiting occurs.

• Our commitment to student placement is through the implementation of the Goodspeed Career Services that is dedicated to finding job placements for ESB graduates.

11. Why does marketing have a relatively low entrance average?

Dean Grant Isaac

• Ah, the laws of supply and demand! Admission averages to a major are simply a reflection of the interest of students at a point in time AND NOT a reflection of the quality of the major or the quality of the students pursuing the major.

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• Admission averages to restricted majors are impacted by supply of seats and demand for those seats. Right now, the average for admission to marketing is low we have more marketing seats than we have students. This may change in any given year and has been different in the past. Admissions averages to restricted majors are an indication of "quality" of the major.

12. Why isn't program planning available year round?

Dean Grant Isaac

• Program planning is the official name given to the census-like exercise undertaken by the staff of the Undergraduate Program Office to assess demand for our programs. Student counselling is an on-going activity and students are encouraged to make an appointment through the office is they want to discuss their particular program.

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• The Undergraduate Program Office uses program planning to determine how much demand exists and how much demand can be met with faculty resources. Many third and fourth year classes are restricted and we use program planning to allocate the restricted seats in a fashion that ensures everyone can complete their major and their degree in an orderly fashion.

13. Do you think it would be beneficial to have debriefing lectures after finals so students can better understand how they performed on exams, and how to improve?

Dean Grant Isaac

• This is an intriguing idea and could probably be useful. Of course, an individual student can always request an opportunity to meet with their individual instructor even after the final exam to discuss their specific performance.

Associate Dean C. Brooke Dobni

• Personally, I don't think we need this. If the students and faculty have it right during the term, then this will not be necessary. Often, students know why they did or did not do well, and there are opportunities to meet with faculty outside of the class as well.

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• I think this would be a great learning opportunity. I wonder how many students would attend?

 14. Are there any plans to expand the seats available in restricted majors?

Dean Grant Isaac

• See #4

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• We are not in a position to expand seats at this point. We are restricted by our faculty complement.

15. Why do we not have a more general 200 level introduction to Human Resource Management?

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• I will have more to announce on this issue at "Pick a Major".

16. How do you ensure comparability in the way classes are delivered and marked?

Dean Grant Isaac

• The delivery of courses is subject to the approved course description. Department Heads have the responsibility to ensure that a particular course is consistent with the approved description. In some cases, courses with multiple sections and instructors might have a faculty coordinator assigned to ensure a level of consistency across sections. In addition, Department Heads have responsibility to approve the final marks submitted for courses in their departments.

Associate Dean C. Brooke Dobni

• We try to get the best professors possible. Also, I don't think we want comparability as variety is important (in terms of approach and styles, etc.). What we do want however, is consistency and fairness.

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• Department heads approved marks for classes within their area and they manage the mean.

17. Will an entrepreneurship major ever be offered as a major to ESB students?

Dean Grant Isaac

• See #1

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• This would be an interesting development. I do not think we will see this in the next couple of years, but I would love to explore such an endeavour when we have the faculty to deliver.

18. Will pick-a-major be run by the ESB eventually?

Dean Grant Isaac

• See #8

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• Student input to "Pick a Major" is critical and we will always need student input. Students want to hear from other students about their experience in the major.

19. Have you considered offering an international business major?

 Dean Grant Isaac

• See #1

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• My answer here is the same as (17) above. ESB recently announced the Hanlon Center for International Business Studies which is part of our commitment to building capacity in this area.

20. Why does it seem that the focus in many classes is more on memorization than application?

Dean Grant Isaac

• All courses should require a demonstration of judgement in 1) an understanding of the frameworks and theories, 2) an ability to apply these frameworks to analyze particular situations, and 3) an ability to evaluate the framework reflectively to better understand, perhaps, the limits of its application. There is a wide range of courses in the ESB covering an even wider range of material and it is the course objectives that drive the evaluative focus.

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• I believe that different classes at different levels in the undergraduate program have different objectives. I know that when I teach COMM 438 which is a case-based class. I emphasize judgement, application, analysis, decision making and evaluation.

21. Are there any plans to restructure the finance major to make it more applicable to investment banking?

Dean Grant Isaac

• See #1

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• I think this question should be posed to the Department Head.

22. How do you think the recent downturn in the economy going to affect finance majors when they graduate?

Associate Dean C. Brooke Dobni

• In the short term, all graduates may be affected as organizations re-consider their human resources. Having a solid education is more important than ever especially in turbulent times as your strongest asset is your knowledge.

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• No. I believe that good finance graduates are needed more than ever given this downturn.

23. Do feel that more case-based learning would be beneficial to students?

Dean Grant Isaac

• Cases can be an effective way to enhance student learning but the usefulness of cases differs depending on the course and its objectives.

Associate Dean C. Brooke Dobni

• Absolutely! If it is done correctly, it is the best approach to learning and application. Being done correctly also means having the students prepare the cases for class discussion as well. All too often, students come unprepared (this is my experience in Comm 401 anyway).

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• I believe that cases play an important part of an undergraduate business education. However, not all classes need to be case-based. I would generally like to see more cases in senior classes.

Personal

1. Do you like your job and why?

Dean Grant Isaac

• What is not to like? On a daily basis I get to work with the finest faculty and staff, an amazing cohort of students and truly inspirational alumni all while living in a City and Province that my family and I love.

Associate Dean Gary Entwistle

• Absolutely.  Great students and great colleagues.  Makes getting up easy.

Associate Dean C. Brooke Dobni

• It is challenging, every day is different, and I feel that I can make a difference. Also allows a lot of flexibility for me to pursue my interests in teaching, research, and service.

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• I love my job!

2. What is your favourite hockey team?

Dean Grant Isaac

• I have been a Flames fan since the day they arrived in Calgary. It was simply a nice coincidence that our significant donor - and a few other University of Saskatchewan alumni - are owners of the Flames!

Associate Dean Gary Entwistle

• Unfortunately, the Maple Leafs

Associate Dean C. Brooke Dobni

• Innovation Honda (co-owner) followed by the Detroit Red Wings (not a co-owner)

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• I don't follow hockey at all.

3. How does one become the Dean of a business school?

Dean Grant Isaac

• By being at the wrong place at the wrong time! The process for selecting a Dean involves lots of interviews and a decision by a committee chaired by the Provost and including representatives of faculty, undergraduate and graduate students, the University's General Academic Assembly, the University's Board of Governors and external stakeholders.

Associate Dean Gary Entwistle

• I'd ask Grant that one.

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• Study lots and have a passion for business and post-secondary education.

4. Why did you originally decide on studying business?

Dean Grant Isaac

• As some of my colleagues have noted, I didn't study business. My degrees are all in economics.

Associate Dean Gary Entwistle

• Can't quite remember.  Just seemed a natural choice.

Associate Dean C. Brooke Dobni

• After the incident, they kicked me out of medical school (just kidding - just checking to see if you are actually reading this)! Truthfully, my father was a businessman - that is what I was exposed to as a youngster. As well, there were a lot of opportunities available upon graduation, and I needed to have a fairly quick turnaround for a career as my wife was putting me through and I promised her I would get back to work!

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• Business was not my first choice or my first degree. I taught high school English for a period of time and didn't get interested in business until later in my career.

5. What is your favourite colour?

Dean Grant Isaac

• Blue. No, green.

Associate Dean Gary Entwistle

• Last year it was Green and White.

Associate Dean C. Brooke Dobni

• All of my vehicles are white, so white it is!

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• I cannot imagine why anyone might care. Red.

 6. If you could have dinner with any person, who would it be?

Dean Grant Isaac

• My wonderful wife. Seriously, between the commitments of this job and a young family there is no time left just to have dinner with my wife. That would be nice.

Associate Dean Gary Entwistle

• Barrack Obama

Associate Dean C. Brooke Dobni

• Either George Harrison of the Beatles or Jay Leno from the Tonight Show. Both at the same time would be great!

 Associate Dean Alison Renny

• Nelson Mandela

7. What did you want to be when you were in university?

Dean Grant Isaac

• I will not lie and say there was a grand plan. There was not. I am an accidental academic. My story is really that unexciting.

Associate Dean Gary Entwistle

• Once I took an accounting class, a Chartered Accountant.

Associate Dean C. Brooke Dobni

• Started out wanting to be a military fighter pilot. I always liked planes and flying - but after the incident, I was grounded (again not true - are you still reading these?) But yes, actually wanted to become a pilot and fly for the snowbirds. I became a pilot - but never flew for the snowbirds or the military!

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• This has changed with each degree. However, I consider myself an accountant by training and trade.

 8. What exactly does your position entail?

Dean Grant Isaac

• Here is how I have written it up for another purpose... As the Dean (or "CEO") of the Edwards School of Business I am responsible for developing the strategy (as well as the supporting policies for effective strategy implementation and control) designed to maximize the academic rigour and professional relevance of our teaching and research programs in a financially sustainable manner. As such, external responsibilities include donor/investor relations, alumni development and communications while internal responsibilities include enhancing the student experience as well as the management and professional development of faculty and staff.

Associate Dean Gary Entwistle

• Working with our faculty to help build their careers

Associate Dean C. Brooke Dobni

• Forward thinking, strategizing, a lot of building.... professional programs, relationships, etc. And then maintaining these as well. I teach, attend meetings and also undertake research. Like I said, there is a lot of variety involved in this position.

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• I oversee the Bachelor of Commerce degree program, the student experience, the interaction between students and faculty and I represent ESB across the campus and with the outside community of stakeholders.

 9. What was your favourite university class?

Dean Grant Isaac

• At the undergraduate level an economics course in growth theory followed closely by a course in international relations (international political economy). At the graduate level, I really enjoyed advanced econometrics.

Associate Dean Gary Entwistle

• Accounting and Tax

Associate Dean C. Brooke Dobni

• Strategy

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• I have a large number of favourite classes. These include most English literature classes, any history class, ACC 321, ACC 323, ACC 335, ACC 438, ACC 496 and ACC 407.

10. How much money do you make?

Associate Dean Gary Entwistle

• Let's just say that I'm glad I made the investment in a PhD

Associate Dean C. Brooke Dobni

• Put it this way, I am able to keep the banker off of the doorstep for the time being. I am comfortable

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• Enough!

11. How is your position evaluated?  What are some key indicators that the Dean(s) of a College are doing a good job?

Dean Grant Isaac

• The University has developed position profiles for Deans as well as a system for evaluation. Indicators are fairly wide ranging. For me, the indicators that matter have to do with the recruitment and retention of terrific faculty, staff and students. If we are getting that right all other things fall into place.

Associate Dean Gary Entwistle

• My first year in this position so hard to say.

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• My performance is evaluated by peers, students and other stakeholders on a routine basis.

12. What do you plan to do when your term as Dean ends?

Dean Grant Isaac

• I am a Professor in the Management and Marketing Department and would very much enjoy returning to the Professoriate teaching more and breathing some life back into my research agenda.

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• Retire.

13. If you had to pick your major right now, what would it be?

Dean Grant Isaac

• For me, the Management Major has great appeal.

Associate Dean Gary Entwistle

• Definitely accounting

Associate Dean C. Brooke Dobni

• I would pick finance. I believe that there is a lot you can do with a solid understanding of how the financial system works.

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• Accounting!

14. If you could attribute your personal success to one factor, what would it be?

Dean Grant Isaac

• I am not sure that I have accomplished enough to claim success and then try to figure out what caused it!

Associate Dean Gary Entwistle

• Good luck.

Associate Dean C. Brooke Dobni

• I would have to say it is my wife. She encouraged me to go back to school (and she also financed it!). The second thing would be wanting to set an example for my kids (that nothing comes easy and hard work pays off).

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• Persistence!

15. When did you realize you wanted to pursue a career in Academe?

Dean Grant Isaac

• When I was offered and accepted a position in the (then) College of Commerce at the University of Saskatchewan! I suggested earlier that I am an accidental academic. I really mean that!

Associate Dean Gary Entwistle

• When I taught my first course at the University of Auckland in New Zealand.

Associate Dean C. Brooke Dobni

• It was when I was taking my undergrad - about 3^rd year. I had a professor named Ignace Ng. He told me that academe was a great career if you liked flexibility. Since I like to march to the beat of my own drum, I looked further into it. Until that time, I didn't even know what a P. hd. was.

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• I never planned this career. It just happened.

 16. How would you recommend approaching a company you would like to work for? (other than background research of the company)

Associate Dean Gary Entwistle

• A well written letter

Associate Dean C. Brooke Dobni

• If you really want to work with that organization, try to approach somebody within and get to know them (but don't waste their time or hound them). Just establish an initial relationship and let them know you are interested, and then let it go from there.

Associate Dean Alison Renny

• Networking!